Jumbo shrimp cheese katsu at Katsu Shokudou, a Suyu katsu restaurant

I've been to Suyu a few times lately to buy a gift for a friend — Kyobo Book Centre, Art Box, all that. Since I kept going after work, it was always dinnertime, so I decided to finally eat something good in Suyu for once. A new spot called Episode Suyu had opened up with a bunch of clean, nice-looking restaurants, and I ended up at one of them — Katsu Shokudou, a well-known tonkatsu place in Suyu.

Where is Katsu Shokudou Suyu, and how do you find the entrance?

There are entrances on both sides of the building. Katsu Shokudou is at the very back of the 1st floor, so just follow the arrows. Katsu Shokudou is already famous as a Blue Ribbon-rated katsu restaurant, and apparently they've now opened a branch in Suyu too. The photo above is the back entrance (I think?).

This is the front entrance. It's the closer one if you're coming from the subway station.

Katsu Shokudou Suyu menu and prices

True to its reputation as a Japanese food restaurant, there's a wide variety of dishes on the menu. Everything looked so delicious that it was actually hard to choose. I came in wanting tonkatsu, but suddenly craved fried shrimp more, so I went with the jumbo shrimp cheese katsu (₩16,000). The set meals also looked like a generous, reasonably priced option.

Solo bar seats and the mood inside Katsu Shokudou Suyu

There's an even mix of tables for 2, tables for 4, and solo bar seating, so you can visit comfortably no matter who you're with — or without. When it's not busy, even solo diners can spread out at a 2-person table. As a professional solo diner, I'd recommend Katsu Shokudou if you're looking for a place to eat alone near Suyu Station.

Every table has a whole bottle of Himalayan pink salt on it. Apparently sprinkling this on your tonkatsu really brings out the flavor.

What the 16,000-won jumbo shrimp cheese katsu looks like

Since it's fried, there's a bit of a wait. When this neat little spread arrived, my first thought was... the shrimp is huge, and overall it's really generous. I'd thought about ordering a set meal but went with the single item instead, and I'm glad I did.

It comes with tonkatsu sauce, shrimp tempura sauce (tartar sauce), wasabi, a clear soup, and — not pictured — a salad with yuzu dressing. I tried sprinkling some Himalayan pink salt next to the wasabi, but it all scattered everywhere, so my attempt at a neat presentation was a total failure, haha. One notable thing: the wasabi isn't spicy at all. I think it's called 'yuzu wasabi' — pretty interesting.

Three ways Katsu Shokudou Suyu tells you to eat the katsu

• Plain, with nothing on it
• Dipped in Himalayan pink salt
• Topped with yuzu wasabi

It made me think this place is really confident in its tonkatsu. These weren't the usual ways people recommend eating katsu, so I got pretty excited and tried all three in order.

The cheese katsu is incredibly soft. 'Melts in your mouth' is honestly the right phrase — the meat just dissolves. Can meat even do that? The cheese was almost chewier than the meat... the texture is really something. If the cheese katsu was already this good, I couldn't help but wonder how amazing a katsu packed full of meat would be.

It's cheese katsu, not straight tonkatsu, but I tried it plain, with salt, and with wasabi, and personally I liked it best with the wasabi on top. What surprised me most was the Himalayan pink salt — a combination I'd never have thought of, but it was clean and really worked.

A jumbo shrimp bigger than my hand, head to tail

The jumbo shrimp is fried head to tail, and it's genuinely huge. Massive. I even took a photo next to my hand to try to show the scale — the shrimp is actually bigger than my hand. I normally don't eat shrimp heads, tails, or shells, but at Katsu Shokudou I ate all of it. Crispy and crunchy, it was quite the delicacy.

The jumbo shrimp is super plump and chewy. It's big enough to take a full bite of, and the batter is soft enough that it didn't scrape up the roof of my mouth. The tartar sauce is sweet and tangy with bits of onion in it, which cuts through the richness and pairs really well with the fried shrimp. Delicious.

Who should eat at Katsu Shokudou Suyu near Suyu Station?

Honestly, I'd expected the opposite texture — chewy tonkatsu and soft fried shrimp — so having my expectations flipped was fun, and getting a texture I never imagined was actually a plus. If you want great tonkatsu in Suyu, are looking for a place to eat alone, need somewhere for lunch, or want a clean, tasty spot for a date, I highly recommend Katsu Shokudou. Officially a solid restaurant near Suyu Station.

• 3 minutes from Suyu Station Exit 5
• Great for solo dining
• Hours: Mon, Wed–Sun 11:30–21:00 / Break time 15:00–17:00 / Closed Tuesdays